Published: Saturday, October 19, 2013 at 7:15 p.m.

Last Modified: Saturday, October 19, 2013 at 7:15 p.m.

With deputies along for backup, Sarasota County Code Enforcement staff went out Thursday morning and removed the “Private Road, Keep Out” sign someone had posted on Forbes Trail.

There were no problems with dogs or irritated neighbors objecting to the removal, a sheriff’s spokeswoman says.

Eric Latimer, an avid bicyclist who often pedals on his commute from North Port to the Real Bikes shop in Venice where he is a mechanic, said that will be good news to a lot of area bicycle riders.

Latimer said many bike customers and other riders he knows had complained about the sign, which for more than a month has kept many away from one of their favorite rural riding routes.

As I reported a few days ago, county officials say Forbes Trail is open to the public, and has been all along, despite that sign. It was put up without county approval by a neighbor, who has not publicly admitted doing it.

The paved, two-lane road is the only access road into the north end of the Deer Prarie Creek Preserve, a large, wooded county park laced with hiking trails just east of the Myakka River.

News about removal of the sign — which convinced people think they would be treated as trespassers if they dared drive or ride there — came to me via phone call from Dan Slack. But unlike the bike riders, Slack wasn’t glad to see that sign come down.

A middle-aged man who owns a marine business, Slack built his home on Forbes Trail six years ago. He liked the almost complete privacy he and his wife enjoyed there, before Deer Prairie Creek Preserve opened.

Now, with the entrance within spitting distance of his driveway, Slack told me he doesn’t appreciate that the road has become so popular, especially with bike riders.

“We get hundreds and hundreds of them,” he estimated.

He means on weekends, mostly. But in his perception, they are inconsiderate invaders. Some bike groups take up a whole lane, or more, and refuse to ride single file when he is stuck driving behind them, he said.

He admitted that his dogs — which he says “are tools, not pets” and are trained to hunt the feral hogs that would otherwise trash his property — do normally run loose there, as bike riders have frequently complained.

But bikers need not worry about his dogs, he insists.

“They only bite hogs,” not people, Slack said.

Latimer agreed they are actually friendly dogs, by the way. He said he has no problem when he pedals by. But many bikers object to close encounters with barking dogs that come running, bite or no bite.

Slack seemed to hint but did not quite say that he posted the controversial sign, which includes the words “No Bicycles, No exceptions.”

“I’ll plead the Fifth,” he told me. But he said he was certainly one of the rural neighborhood residents who was glad to see that the sign had been working. Many people were turning around at the sign, which was almost a mile from his house.

Forbes Trail should be private, he told me.

“I own the land,” he said, referring to the property the road is built on, or, anyway, one section of it, and even then only one lane. And that public easement claim the county asserts? Slack says he has no idea where that comes from.

“I never heard anything about that when I bought it,” he said. And, he insists, the county doesn’t mow there — he does — and ignores calls about fixing potholes. If it is public, he says, “They should maintain it.”

Maybe potholes have been a bigger problem than bicycles. Early this year, Slack lost control of his motorcycle on Forbes Trail. His wife was on it with him. Neither wore helmets, the accident report said. His injuries were minor, but his wife was hospitalized in critical condition.

“She has made a remarkable recovery,” Slack told me.

Glad to hear that. I had been afraid to ask. But I was also thinking that hog-hunting dogs running loose can cause similar accidents when they mingle enthusiastically with a tempting herd of passing bikes.

Some riders were back out on Friday. Several stopped near his house, as if trying a new strategy for dealing with the dogs. Slack thought they were doing it to taunt them, but I’m hoping they decided a meet-and-greet with the dogs could make future passages friendlier and safer.

Slack did not tell me that on Friday, the Sheriff’s Office cited him — for the second time — for letting his dogs run loose. But he did say no one who lives there ever complains about his dogs.

It’s just those bikers.

I like Latimer’s attitude. The guy who does a 23-mile bike commute and who works on bikes for a living said he thinks bikers can get along with the dogs and the people there, if they are all courteous.

“We as cyclists need to think about what we’re doing,” too. The sign removal shows that cyclists have a right to use the road, he said, not to hog it.

<p>With deputies along for backup, Sarasota County Code Enforcement staff went out Thursday morning and removed the “Private Road, Keep Out” sign someone had posted on Forbes Trail.</p><p>There were no problems with dogs or irritated neighbors objecting to the removal, a sheriff's spokeswoman says.</p><p>Eric Latimer, an avid bicyclist who often pedals on his commute from North Port to the Real Bikes shop in Venice where he is a mechanic, said that will be good news to a lot of area bicycle riders. </p><p>Latimer said many bike customers and other riders he knows had complained about the sign, which for more than a month has kept many away from one of their favorite rural riding routes.</p><p>As I reported a few days ago, county officials say Forbes Trail is open to the public, and has been all along, despite that sign. It was put up without county approval by a neighbor, who has not publicly admitted doing it. </p><p>The paved, two-lane road is the only access road into the north end of the Deer Prarie Creek Preserve, a large, wooded county park laced with hiking trails just east of the Myakka River.</p><p>News about removal of the sign — which convinced people think they would be treated as trespassers if they dared drive or ride there — came to me via phone call from Dan Slack. But unlike the bike riders, Slack wasn't glad to see that sign come down.</p><p>A middle-aged man who owns a marine business, Slack built his home on Forbes Trail six years ago. He liked the almost complete privacy he and his wife enjoyed there, before Deer Prairie Creek Preserve opened. </p><p>Now, with the entrance within spitting distance of his driveway, Slack told me he doesn't appreciate that the road has become so popular, especially with bike riders.</p><p>“We get hundreds and hundreds of them,” he estimated.</p><p>He means on weekends, mostly. But in his perception, they are inconsiderate invaders. Some bike groups take up a whole lane, or more, and refuse to ride single file when he is stuck driving behind them, he said.</p><p>He admitted that his dogs — which he says “are tools, not pets” and are trained to hunt the feral hogs that would otherwise trash his property — do normally run loose there, as bike riders have frequently complained.</p><p>But bikers need not worry about his dogs, he insists.</p><p>“They only bite hogs,” not people, Slack said.</p><p>Latimer agreed they are actually friendly dogs, by the way. He said he has no problem when he pedals by. But many bikers object to close encounters with barking dogs that come running, bite or no bite.</p><p>Slack seemed to hint but did not quite say that he posted the controversial sign, which includes the words “No Bicycles, No exceptions.”</p><p>“I'll plead the Fifth,” he told me. But he said he was certainly one of the rural neighborhood residents who was glad to see that the sign had been working. Many people were turning around at the sign, which was almost a mile from his house.</p><p>Forbes Trail should be private, he told me.</p><p>“I own the land,” he said, referring to the property the road is built on, or, anyway, one section of it, and even then only one lane. And that public easement claim the county asserts? Slack says he has no idea where that comes from.</p><p>“I never heard anything about that when I bought it,” he said. And, he insists, the county doesn't mow there — he does — and ignores calls about fixing potholes. If it is public, he says, “They should maintain it.”</p><p>Maybe potholes have been a bigger problem than bicycles. Early this year, Slack lost control of his motorcycle on Forbes Trail. His wife was on it with him. Neither wore helmets, the accident report said. His injuries were minor, but his wife was hospitalized in critical condition.</p><p>“She has made a remarkable recovery,” Slack told me.</p><p>Glad to hear that. I had been afraid to ask. But I was also thinking that hog-hunting dogs running loose can cause similar accidents when they mingle enthusiastically with a tempting herd of passing bikes.</p><p>Some riders were back out on Friday. Several stopped near his house, as if trying a new strategy for dealing with the dogs. Slack thought they were doing it to taunt them, but I'm hoping they decided a meet-and-greet with the dogs could make future passages friendlier and safer.</p><p>Slack did not tell me that on Friday, the Sheriff's Office cited him — for the second time — for letting his dogs run loose. But he did say no one who lives there ever complains about his dogs. </p><p>It's just those bikers.</p><p>I like Latimer's attitude. The guy who does a 23-mile bike commute and who works on bikes for a living said he thinks bikers can get along with the dogs and the people there, if they are all courteous.</p><p>“We as cyclists need to think about what we're doing,” too. The sign removal shows that cyclists have a right to use the road, he said, not to hog it.</p>